Wicked
by PurpleAmoeba
Summary: Unfortunate chance strands a girl upon an island crowded with boys. Can she convince them to cling to civilization or will she convert with them and become leader of them all? CHAP 6 UP -finally-
1. Chapter 1

Hello there! This is my first Lord of the Flies fanfic, but this idea has been locked in my head since I first read it, so it was worth a shot. I'm gonna try and make it as much like the book I can, such as the savagery vs. civilization occurring, but also try to add in some originality and 'personal touch'. :D

**Disclaimer Time**: I don't own LotF, William Golding does. But if I did, I probably would have introduced females and twisted it into a romance novel for sure.

"The wickedness of others becomes our own wickedness because it kindles something evil in our own hearts."

-Carl Jung

* * *

The figure swiftly raced over the dense forest floor. Ferns and bushes slapped at its feet, but it didn't hinder it. It expertly dodged trees and leaped over scattered trunks. Ahead of them, it could hear its target, its prey. It noisily stumbled through the thick fauna, and it was slowing. The figure gripped onto its sharp, silver blade and sped ahead. It burst into a clearing and upon its prey. It raised its weapon as the prey turned, revealing itself to be a young girl. She screamed as the sword rammed itself into her heart.

Cassandra woke up screaming. Her forehead was slick and she felt ill. It was only a nightmare. It was only _that _nightmare.

She pushed herself upright and stretched. The airplane seat was uncomfortable and sticky with sweat. It was a wonder she even fell asleep. The glanced over at the pilot and took a peek outside the nearest window in the cockpit. It was dark and the clouds ahead of them were dark with signs of a storm.

"Cassandra, glad you're awake. Although, I think the screaming woke both of us up," the pilot teased lightly. The girl smiled wistfully.

"You know, you can call me Cassie. Everybody else does."

"Alright Miss Cassie, you may want to buckle down. We're going to have to fly through this storm cloud," the pilot ordered. Cassie hastily buckled herself down and nervously gripped the arms of her chair. It was her first airplane flight, but she had an inkling it was going to be her last. That was normal for first-time fliers though, right? If only her father wasn't going away, she'd be at home reading, or relaxing in her father's study. But no, she was flying to her Aunt's on a plane loaded with boys. She had taken a peek earlier at them. They were dressed in uniforms. Either they were military boys or private school lads.

She shook her head to clear it. She was lucky her father was able to arrange this flight. A friend of a friend happened to be the pilot. Otherwise, she'd be staying with the grumpy, elderly neighbors for two weeks until the next available flight. Flying wasn't all that bad though. What were the odds something would go wrong?

The plane propelled itself forward, into the stormy cloud. Immediately, the plane began to shake. Cassie could hear faint shouts of surprise from behind the captain's door. The whole plane was jerking now. Even with her seat belt locked, her body whipped back and forth in the seat. The Pilot gripped his wheel and muttered darkly under his breath.

A quick flash of light engulfed the cabin, blinding Cassie. Before she could shield her eyes, it was gone. It was replaced with shrill beeps and whistles. The Pilot gasped.

The plane lurched downward and began to spiral out of control. Cassie screamed and gripped her seat.

"What's happening?!" she screamed shrilly.

"Lightening! We're going down! Brace yourself!" he shouted back. Cassie's eyes widened and her face blanched.

"No no no!" she whispered loudly. The clouds dispersed and she could see a spot of land beneath them. At least it wouldn't be a watery death…

The aircraft flipped as it rammed itself into the island. The cockpit broke off from the fuselage and flew deep into the jungle. It knocked against trees and bounced across the forest floor. Eventually, it rolled to a halt.

* * *

Cassie opened her eyes. She was alive. She was alive! She tried to unbuckle herself, but her fingers wouldn't stop shaking. She held them up to her face and glared at them. They trembled and shook so badly, it looked like she was trying the play the piano. She looked over at the captain and gasped. His neck was broken completely, his head flopping to the side. Sweat was dripping off her head and seeping into her eyes. She gingerly touched her head, but winced. She must have knocked it on something, probably the dash. No surprise there. She wasn't that invincible to think she'd come out of a plane crash without an injury.

The sweat continued to seep from her head, but it was falling more steadily. Cassie roughly wiped it off the back of her hands. Why would she be sweating this much? She caught the back of her hand in her peripheral vision. The sweat wasn't clear, but crimson. It was blood. She didn't bump her head, she opened it.

Her fingers flew to her seat belt and she hurriedly unbuckled it. When she tried to stand, her legs trembled and she collapsed against her seat. Her breath quickened, her heart raced. She positioned herself on all fours and began to crawl out of the cockpit. The light emanating from outside caused her to squint her eyes and shuffle more slowly. If the crash occurred at night, probably in the middle of the night, then, she concluded slowly, she must have been out for a while. If she survived though, could others too? Her head was throbbing and the blood was dripping into her eyes. Her thoughts were starting to become jumbled and she was beginning to lose focus of her surroundings.

She finished crawling out of the cockpit and rested in the path of the burning day sun. The forest floor was dry and scattered with leaves. Cassie pulled herself off the path of the cockpit's destruction. As much as it pained her head to think, she needed to be in the shade, away from the sun. She leaned herself against a shady tree. The pain from her head was increasing. Perhaps if she could find another survivor, she'd have chance. But first, she needed to fix her head.

She removed the light brown sweater she was wearing and wrapped it roughly around her head. The pain was overwhelming now. Her eyes were blinking rapidly as sleep began to seep in. Cassie knew she needed to stay awake, but she was so tired…

She closed her eyes. She fell into the blackness of sleep within seconds.

* * *

Authors Notes: Alrighty, short chappie, but I wanted to get a short introduction about why Cassandra's here. Hopefully, she doesn't already sound Mary Sue-ish, because I really wanted to put some character behind her so everybody can understand the way she acts. Plus, with OCs, some background is necessary. More info about Cassandra will come within the next few chappies hopefully. Plus, next chappie everyone all the island gets to meet Cassie.


	2. Chapter 2

Hey everybody! Here's the next chappie of _Light upon Man_. It's gonna be a lot longer than the first chapter. I wanted to keep all of the original meeting of characters in one chappie. So without further adieu, chapter 2 (unintentional rhyming done on my part there)

**Disclaimer Time**: I don't own LotF, William Golding does. But if I did, I probably would have introduced females and twisted it into a romance novel for sure.

* * *

"The wickedness of others becomes our own wickedness because it kindles something evil in our own hearts."

-Carl Jung

* * *

A couple days passed on the island. Cassie was unaware of the time passed though. She slept, or was unconscious, a majority of the time. Sometimes a bird might trill in the early mornings or a wild pig would fearfully run by and jolt her awake, but she was asleep again in a matter of minutes.

The nightmares returned. Dream Cassie ran through a jungle, sprinting passed the trees and gracefully leaping over the undergrowth. In her hand she held the familiar grip of a saber, light but lethal. She'd break free of the vegetation and wield her weapon to her frightened opponent, a young girl. She was small, barely seven years old with dark blonde hair and large green eyes. Cassie would grin triumphantly and she could see the glint of her sword reflect in the girl's terrified eyes. Then, Cassie would leap forward and plunge the metal deep into her chest. Blood spurted out and left scarlet spots on Cassie's exposed arms and face. The little girl's screams would drive Cassie more and inch the saber deeper into her flesh.

The nightmare would end when Cassie was startled awake. Each time, her head never ceased to throb with pain. She'd fall back asleep though and the nightmares would repeat.

Again. And Again. And Again.

* * *

Cassie awoke on her third day on the island. Her head wasn't throbbing anymore, but was a light pain on her head. At least it was more bearable. After five minutes, she was still conscious, and Cassie took that as a good sign. Her head was hot and sweaty though. She reached up and felt familiar soft cloth. She'd left her sweater wrapped around her head. She carefully unwound it and tied it around her waist. There was a large rusty stain on the back from her head wound and the occasional dirt mark, but otherwise in good condition.

Cassie breathed in deeply and took a long look at her surroundings. The plant life looked exactly like the pictures of the jungle from her father's study. Everything was green and lush with bright, colorful flowers. As for the animal life, birds could be heard every so often and Cassie vaguely remembered hearing pigs running in the brush. She wondered where the animals went to drink. Her mouth was dry, and her skin was hot and itchy, begging for a cool down.

She stood up slowly and leaned with her back against the tree. Judging by the lack of shadows everywhere, she made a guess it was close to midday. That wouldn't help her thirst a bit. Cassie trudged through the jungle as much as she could fit. Some parts were so dense that she would have to turn around the find another way. She had no clue where she could find a stream.

"Come on," she muttered to herself. "What do you know from Father's books?"

She knew plants grew around water. She knew water ran downhill. She also knew a human's body could only last a few days without water.

After an hours worth of unsuccessful hunting, she came across a path cutting through the jungle. It was small with strange prints embedded in the dirt. She carefully leaned down and studied them. They were small, with two indentions directly next to each other. They looked like hoof prints. The pigs on the island created them most likely.

"This path will lead me to some pigs and maybe even where they get their water," Cassie whispered excitingly. Happier now that she had a plan, she walked quicker. After following the trail for a few minutes, she saw the trail stop before a huge clump of vegetation. She halted, and tried to peer through. She couldn't really see much, but the trail might continue on the other side.

A rustle in the bushes startled her. She turned and squinted against the bright noon sun and stared into the brush on the sides of the small trail. The rustling became a rumbling.

"EEEEHHHHH!" squealed a large boar. It broke free from its cover and charged towards Cassie. Instinctively she stepped backward. Her first steps backward were met with firm footing, yet as she stumbled backwards through the course thicket, her foot met nothing.

She didn't have time to scream before she was falling backward down the side of a large hill. She was rolling and banging her already sore head against various fallen branches and scattered stones. Everything around her was become a colorful blur. She felt like she needed to vomit. She hurtled off a bump and was tossed in the air. Gravity eventually slammed her against a clear patch of hot dirt, where she remained still and winded.

* * *

Cassie heard voices before she could open her eyes. They were soft and many of them. A whole group of people it sounded like. Her eyes fluttered open. She was greeted with a bright white light. Voices? White light?

_Oh no! I've died and went to Heaven! _she thought.

She opened her eyes wider and the light dimmed. Above her face was a dark shadow. It was speaking to her, but what was it asking? Her game? No, her _name. _The figure was asking for her name. The shadow brightened and Cassie could see the figure's face. It was coated with ebony coal and crimson blood, like war paint. Its hair was a dark red and its eyes were a chilling blue. It stared expectantly at her, but she couldn't speak. For once, she was speechless.

_Oh no! I died and went to Hell instead! _she screamed to herself.

She felt a pressure building in her throat. It built to a point where she couldn't breathe. The pressure was the plane crash, her head injury, being charged at by a beast, rolling down a hill, and meeting a savage from Hell. Women had an interesting way of relieving pressure when the time called for it.

"AHHHHHHH!" She screamed piercingly. She scurried backward, still screaming, and glanced around. There were at least a dozen painted savages. They varied in sizes, but wore similar designs on their faces. Cassie screamed louder. Several dropped their crude weapons and covered their ears. If she could distract them, perhaps…

She was too busy screaming. Cassie failed to notice the red-haired savage creep up to her and roughly cover her mouth. She squealed and tried to bite him.

"Stop. Screaming." He commanded. Cassie experienced several emotions in those seconds. Surprise. Rage. Sly calmness. She nodded slowly. The red-haired savage exhaled and removed his hand.

"That wasn't so-"Cassie swung up her leg between his opened legs. The savage yelped and dropped to his knees.

"Damn you," he squeaked out. He moaned and gripped himself. Cassie scuttled backwards out of his reach. Shakily, she rose to her feet. She heard footsteps behind her. Someone had crept up from behind. They had a knife against her throat and an arm around her thin waist.

"You'll pay for that," a dark voice whispered into her ear. The remaining savages whooped and hollered.

"You get her, Roger!"

"Avenge Jack!"

"Slice her throat!"

Cassie leaned forward trying to pull away. The savage, Roger, leaned backward trying to keep her from moving. Cassie grinned inside her head. She changed directions and leaned backward with all her might. The sudden change unbalanced Roger and they both tumbled into the dirt in a tangle of limbs. Roger flailed his arms, and the arm with the knife made contact with Cassie's thigh, right above the knee. She screamed again and clamped down on her bleeding leg.

Roger lay beside her, slightly dazed from their fall. The knife was no longer in his hand, but lying in between them. She slung her free arm out and scooped up the knife. It felt perfect in her hand. The blade shone with her blood.

_Soon, not only my blood _she thought darkly.

She raised the knife high above her head. She held it in her fist with the thumb placed on the bottom of the hilt, ready for stabbing. She remained still for a second. Roger's eyes were wide, his mouth opened, his whole face screaming with terror. It fueled Cassie's fury. She brought the knife down upon Roger in a final stabbing blow.

Midway, a hand flew out and grabbed her wrist. Cassie pulled and jerked, yet the hand didn't loosen its grip. She twisted her head and gazed upwards. The red-haired savage was up and moving. He was also glaring at her.

"Let go of my knife," he ordered. Cassie glared back up at him. She was vaguely aware of Roger crawling away, but she didn't avert her stare. Meanwhile, the savage was quickly tightening his hold on her wrist. Neither of them blinked. She was losing feeling to her hand. They continued their stare-down.

Cassie blinked. She dropped the knife and it landed harmlessly onto the dirt. The savage released his wrist and everybody cheered. He leaned down and scooped up his knife.

"Alright everybody! Return to camp. Roger! Tell Ralph what happened," he ordered.

Roger nodded and disappeared into the jungle along with the rest of the group.

Cassie had many questions. Who was Ralph? They had a camp? What was the name of the red-haired savage? Was he their leader? Why weren't there any adults in the group?

"I'm Jack Merridew," the red-haired savage announced. He stuck out his hand. Cassie stared down at it. Her right hand was still numb from their previous battle, so she stuck out her left hand, the same one that was covered with blood from her thigh. Jack gazed down at it.

"Err…no thanks," he said. "Let me take you to our camp. We can fix your leg and you can tell us about yourself."

Cassie nodded curtly. Jack leaned down and wrapped one of his arms around her waist. She weakly draped one of hers across his neck. He lifted her upwards and she balanced on her right, uncut, leg.

_It's funny _she thought. _I've lost so much blood from the crash, haven't drunken any water in days, and now I'm bleeding from my leg. I should be- _Cassie's sight disappeared and her legs gave out beneath her. She tumbled to the ground and experienced the all-too-familiar feel of unconsciousness.

* * *

She didn't dream. Perhaps she'd lost so much fluid, there wasn't enough left in her brain to power a nightmare. She was awake now though. She could feel warm, fine dirt beneath her. It wasn't the hard packed dirt of the jungle. Whatever she was lying in, it was shifty and pleasant. Cassie could hear voices chatting above her. She heard Jack's voice accompanied with two unfamiliar ones.

"I told you two, I didn't do _anything_. She just passed out for no reason. We'd barely gone two steps!"

"Just a cut on her leg caused her to pass out?"

"No. Look at the back of her head. It's all matted and there's dried blood. She probably hit her head recently. Combined with her fresh cut there must not have been enough blood reaching her brain. So she passed out. The problem is cleaning her wound."

"What do you mean Piggy?"

"If the wound gets infected, she could lose her leg. We should probably boil some water and pour it over the wound, then wrap it in a clean cloth."

"Why boiling water?"

"Hopefully it'll rid the wound of any bacteria or early infection."

_Oh no. They are _not _about to pour scalding water over my open wound. _Cassie thought angrily. She opened her eyes and attempted to catch their attention. She could barely see three boys. One was slender with fair blonde hair. Beside him was a chunky boy with short brown hair and small circular frames. He looked like the type of person who would know about scientific stuff. The last one, and the nearest one sitting to her, was a sinewy lad with dark red hair. It looked liked Jack. His paint wasn't on his face though.

Cassie couldn't speak. Her throat was too dry and hoarse from screaming. She could move her hands though. She peered along the ground looking for something to get their attention. Perhaps a stick or a particularly sharp stone would work. All she could see was Jack's hand resting about half a foot from hers.

She inched her hand over to his and tapped it gently. Jack didn't notice, but continued to argue with the hefty boy, Piggy. She tapped again. No response. Cassie groaned inside her head. The boy must have leather skin. She raised her fingers an inch into the air and brought her fingernails down into Jack's hand.

"OW!" Jack jerked his hand up and rubbed it. Piggy peered at him from behind his small frames.

"What happened?" he asked. Jack glared down at his hand.

"I dunno know. Something-"He glanced down at the girl that was supposed to be sleeping next to him. She was glowering at him. Piggy noticed.

"Quick! Ralph, get her some water," Piggy ordered. Ralph left and returned shortly with a coconut overflowing with water. He handed it to Cassie who chugged it down. It flowed down her dried esophagus and wet her mouth. She dropped the empty coconut beside her. Ralph returned with another.

"You," Cassie pointed at Piggy with a slightly upraised finger. "Come closer. I want to thank you." Piggy looked smug and made a point to make it known to the other two boys. He leaned down close to Cassie. She calmly drank a mouthful of water and leaned up close to Piggy's face. She squirted her mouthful into his face.

Piggy fell backwards sputtering and dripping wet. Jack and Ralph burst out laughing.

"Wha…what was that for? I thought you wanted to thank me!" Piggy babbled.

"I did…for almost pouring scalding water onto me!" Cassie shot back.

"But it has to be done! You could catch an infection!"

"I don't care. I'm not doing it."

"Yes, you are," said Ralph. "It's for your own good. We've already got the water boiling and everything."

"I don't know any of you, but you're gonna pour boiling water on me?"

"Hold on, you never told me your name. I was kind enough to tell you mine."

"Cassandra McCartney. Call me Cassie." She muttered. Ralph stood up and walked away. Piggy reached up for his glasses and began to polish them.

"Jack, you're gonna have to hold her still. I bet she's gonna try to hurt me the minute I start pouring," he said. Jack rolled his eyes, but agreed. He picked up Cassie from underneath his arms and heaved her into a sitting position. From there, he positioned himself on his knees and wrapped both arms around her middle, securing her arms in place. Cassie glared at Piggy.

"I bet I'll hurt you before you start pouring," she threatened. Piggy polished his glasses again.

"There's nothing to be afraid of. It'll be over before you know it," he said. Jack leaned in close to her ear.

"Why do you have such long hair?" he whispered. It gave Cassie goose bumps along her arms and legs. Back home, everybody said she looked just like her mother with her hair. It was dark brown and reached mid-back.

"Perhaps I shall cut it in the middle of the night," Jack threatened. Cassie twisted her head around and smiled at him.

"Perhaps I shall steal your knife that same night and cut off your-"

"Ahem," Ralph had returned. He obviously had overheard Cassie. His face was bright red. "The water's boiling and ready to use." Piggy nodded happily. He had Ralph pin Cassie's legs down. Piggy then nervously rolled her skirt up almost all the way to her hip in able to see the entire wound. The cut had stopped bleeding, but the entire left thigh was stained red with blood and looked all around disgusting looking. Piggy brought over several coconuts of boiling water and a strip of cloth cut from the sweater that she had tied around her waist earlier. He glanced over at Cassie.

"Prepare yourself," he said. He raised the first bowl of hot water and tipped it over the wound. The pain was indescribable. It felt like lightening was drilling itself into her skin. She thrashed and squirmed under Jack and Ralph's grip. The pain was driving her wild. The first coconut was finished. Piggy poured a second, and a third, and a fourth. By the time the fourth coconut was empty, Cassie was on the verge of passing out from the pain.

"That's done. Jack, hand me your knife," Piggy said. Both Jack and Cassie looked at him suspiciously.

"Why?" Jack asked. Piggy paled and looked away.

"I want to let it get hot in the fire then use it to close Cassie's wound." Cassie picture Piggy holding a hot knife and digging it into her skin. He would laugh at her screams and bury the small weapon deeper into her flesh.

"Oh no you're not. Don't you even come close to me with that knife," Cassie threatened. Ralph shifted uneasily. He wouldn't like it if someone tried to press a hot metal knife to his leg after having four bowls of hot water poured onto him.

"Piggy, can't we just wrap it up?" Ralph asked politely. Piggy sighed dejectedly.

"I suppose, but I don't want it to reopen. Cassie, you can't apply any pressure to it, or it could reopen again and we'll have to pour water over it all over again, do you understand?" Piggy asked. She glared at him.

"I'm not a child. I'm fifteen; I know what the consequences are. Now someone help me up. I wanna go lie in the shade." Piggy slid his glasses off his face and polished them with his shirt.

"I said no pressure. That means no standing. The only way you can move is if someone carries you Cassie," he said gently. Her nostrils flared, and her eyes brightened.

"I will not be carried around." She announced proudly. Jack scoffed from behind her. She jumped. She had forgotten he was behind her. She turned and stared at him.

"What are you complaining about? You don't have to carry someone around for the next few weeks," he said. Cassie had to admit he had a point. Hold on though.

"Are you volunteering?" she asked curiously. Jack sat on his knees and didn't respond. After a minute he nodded. Ralph sighed with relief. He released Cassie's legs and collected the empty coconut bowls. Piggy frowned, but stood up and walked away. Jack released his grip around Cassie's middle. The returning circulation in her arms tingled. Then he placed one arm under her knees, and the other under her back. Cassie groaned to herself and wrapped her arms around his neck. Jack lifted her up.

"Oh my god. Do you just sit around and eat all day long?" he huffed. Cassie glared up at his face. She wasn't thin, but she was far from large. As she was carried along towards a group of crude shelters, a boy ran up to them with a suggestive smile on his face.

"Hey Jack. Where are you two-"the boy stopped. Both Jack and the new girl were scowling at him. Their frowns were identical. Both of them looked liked they were going to attack him. Their matching expressions were intimidating. Maurice felt like he was going to pee in his shorts. Jack's glares were frightening, but now it felt like he was receiving a double hit.

"…going," he squeaked out. He turned around and ran away. His body disappeared behind a clump of large rocks buried at the edge of the ocean.

Jack brought Cassie over to one of the wooden shelters. It was decent in size, big enough for several boys. Sticks were driven into the ground to create three walls, leaving one open. The ceiling consisted of large palm leaves. Jack dropped Cassie onto the soft floor. It was the same shifty material that she was lying in earlier. She lifted a handful into her palm and let it slip through her fingers. She had never seen or felt sand before. She had only heard stories about beaches being covered in the fine, white material. She looked up at Jack who was staring back at her.

"I'm thirsty. Can you get me something to drink?" she asked. He rolled his eyes.

"I may be carrying you around, but I'm not your caretaker."

"Well, then carry me to some water," she demanded. Jack shook his red head.

"I don't have time to carry you all over the place. Like it or not, you're gonna be sitting in here for awhile." That was it. Cassie not only had to depend on an arrogant bully, but he wasn't even gonna _let _her depend on him.

"No. _You _volunteered to carry me around and that includes whenever I want, wherever I want. It also means you are going to take care of me," she pointed at herself, and then crossed her arms. Jack raised an eyebrow and smirked.

"I didn't know I was supposed to be watching over a spoiled princess."

"I'm not spoiled! And that's beside the point. Why would you volunteer for something you weren't gonna do?" she asked. _Because you feel guilty? Because you're bored? Because you like me? _Cassie's stomach twisted into a knot.

"Because I'm the only one that can carry your dead weight," he replied smugly. Cassie covered her face with her hands and rolled away from Jack's imposing figure. Hopefully he couldn't see her reddening face.

* * *

AN: Alright, first off, the medical stuff in this chapter, i.e. Piggy pouring boiling water on Cassie, was purely unrealistic. Not only would that hurt, but I don't think it really works. Time being decades ago though and the boys are stranded with limited resources, it sounds like a believable option at the time. So do not attempt at home.

Thanks to StarLove18 for her review!


	3. Chapter 3

**Disclaimer Time**: I don't own LotF, William Golding does. But if I did, I probably would have introduced females and twisted it into a romance novel for sure.

* * *

"The wickedness of others becomes our own wickedness because it kindles something evil in our own hearts."

-Carl Jung

* * *

Cassie lay quietly in the toasty sand. It felt heavenly to be so comfortable. She lifted another handful into her palm. The sunlight streaming through the opened side of the shelter illuminated the pale sand into a brilliant gold. She gently spread apart her fingers and the golden grains trickled downward, like liquid gold pouring back into a golden sea.

A shadow appeared on sand around her. Her golden fantasy returned to being ordinary yellow sand. She raised her eyes. It was the hefty boy, Piggy. He had a coconut shell in each hand.

"I brought you more water. Jack told me you wanted some more," he said. Cassie didn't move to take the shells. Piggy shifted his weight and cautiously laid the shells at his feet. Cassie narrowed her green eyes and deepened her frown.

"Why are you doing this? Why isn't Jack doing this?" she asked. The boy shifted again. His glasses crept down his nose. His chubby fingers reached up and nudged them back into place.

"He wanted to go hunting some more before it got dark. Ralph didn't wa-need my help gathering fruit, so I brought you water," he said softly. Cassie's eyes brightened angrily. Jack was so irresponsible, so uncaring, so…probably typical Jack. She glanced over at the uncomfortable lad before her. Being so useless physically, he must have felt useful to be able to help her. The mature thing for her to act would be accept the water and offer an apology for her aggressive behavior earlier.

"Thanks for the water," she said gruffly. Piggy waited. Cassie reached forward and guzzled both shells. One out of two would work. Piggy cleared his throat to catch her attention.

"Well, let me properly introduce myself. Everyone calls me Piggy-"

"What's your real name?"

"Rupert."

"U-huh. Continue Piggy."

"I turned thirteen approximately three months ago. I also have asthma," he announced. She raised her eyebrows. She knew a girl who had asthma. Everyone at school called her Breathless Beverly. Cassie remembered walking in on her in the girl's lavatory. Beverly had been crying in the third stall.

"What about everyone else here?"

"Well, Jack, Ralph, and Maurice are all fifteen. Ralph's the leader, too. Jack's the leader of the hunters. Roger's fourteen. He's Jack's right hand. Robert, Simon, and I are all about thirteen. I don't know much about Robert, but Simon is helpful when you need him. Oh, I almost forgot the twins, Sam and Eric. They're thirteen, too…" The list continued. Piggy's voice droned on, naming more than a dozen boys. The youngest on the island was Percival, a sensitive nine year old. As if a light had turned on, or perhaps that was Piggy shifting to the side and allowing more sunlight in, Cassie became more aware of a small fact.

She was the only female on an island inhabited by adolescent males.

On cue, the thoughts began to pile up in her head. How was she going to bathe? She couldn't sleep in a shelter filled with boys. Where would she use the bathroom? What if her clothes became ruined? What if that time of month…?

There must have been a look on her face. Piggy asked her if she was alright because she was looking a bit pale.

"Why would I be alright? I'm the only girl on this island and I'm not allowed to move on my own! What if I need to use the restroom or my time comes?" Piggy cocked his head to the side. "What time?"

Cassie's mouth dropped and her eyes widened. He looked genuinely perplexed. How could he not know? If he didn't, she sure wasn't going to explain. It was embarrassing for her when her grandmother talked to her about 'becoming a woman.' She could barely imagine how mortifying it would be for a boy.

A small lad ran into the shelter, disturbing the awkward silence. He was doubled-over and gasping for breath. He lifted his head and his dark blue eyes sparkled with excitement.

"Jack! He's returned! He killed a pig!" he shouted. Before Piggy or Cassie could react, he disappeared out the way he had come. Piggy removed his spectacles and rubbed them on his grubby shirt. "I'd better go find Ralph."

He left Cassie sitting in her pile of ordinary yellow sand.

* * *

Night came quickly. The gold and tangerine rays of the setting sun spread like fingers tips across the beach, staining the sand into rich hues. As the sun plunged into the sea, the finger tips of gold and orange scraped the sand. Finally, they were pulled into the foamy waves and the light in the world vanished. The speckles of the stars illuminated the darkness accompanied by the glowing of the moon.

On the beach, a large fire burned bright and hot. More than a dozen boys sat around the blazing fire, a stick plunged deep into the heart. Occasionally one would remove his stick and gobble up the meat roasted upon the end.

Cassie could hear them whooping and hollering. The smell of roasted meat tempted her nostrils and watered her mouth. Piggy never came back, and no one brought her any of the spoils. If only she was allowed to walk, she'd stuff herself full of the sizzling, tantalizing meat.

But she couldn't walk. She rested her arms upon her propped knees and laid her head down on her arms, gazing out at the black ocean. The walk wouldn't be _that _far. Surely she could make it undamaged.

A fair head appeared in front of her view.

"Come on Cassie. I can help you walk over," Ralph offered. Cassie nodded vigorously. Ralph smiled and came around to her side. She wrapped an arm around his back, and he carefully positioned his around her waist. They rose and walked towards the roasting pit, just beyond the cluster of shelters.

"Won't Piggy be upset that I'm exerting my leg?" Cassie asked. Ralph chuckled.

"I'm pretty sure you're not going to die hobbling fifty paces to a fire," he replied. His pleasant mood was rubbing off on Cassie and she couldn't help grinning.

As they arrived, Cassie noticed Jack sitting upon a small log while everybody else sat in the sand. Roger sat beside him on his right with Maurice on Jack's left. The rest of the boys were mixed together around the dimming fire. Ralph brought them to the other side of the fire opposite of Jack. Ralph lowered both of them into the warm sand. Piggy looked at Cassie disapproval.

Cassie tilted her head upward, and glared down at Piggy with narrowed eyes. Cassie received 'the look' numerous times from her grandmother at afternoon tea. Cassie would usually appear for tea with a stained dress and knotted hair. Soon after, she had mastered 'the look' from example. Piggy frowned, but looked away.

Sitting beside Cassie on her right was a dark haired boy she hadn't seen before. He leaned towards her and smiled shyly.

"Ralph had me save you a piece of meat. I'm Simon," he handed her a piece of browned pig's meat, still warm. She took it tenderly, and smiled at Simon.

"Thank you Simon," she whispered softly. She ate it slowly, trying to make it last. The huddle of boys, plus Cassie, sat hushed around the low fire. Jack was beginning the tale of how he slayed the wild pig.

"The underbrush was deep, but I fought my way through with only my bare hands. It was tough, but the jungle's no match for Jack Merridew."

His tale continued long into the night. The fire was no longer burning, and all that remained was a cooling pile of embers. Cassie yawned and stretched her arms over her head. Jack certainly put effort into making himself appear heroic.

"..and then I brought the beast back to our camp where we feasted upon his body!" Everybody, minus Cassie, applauded loudly for Jack's epic tale. He bowed deeply, absorbing the attention like a sponge. Cassie was tired. She wasn't going to sit and wait for Jack to finish his vanity show.

"Ralph, can you help me back?" Cassie whispered as loudly as she could muster. Her throat was still raw from the day's earlier commotion. He heard her and nodded. As she prepared to hobble back to the shelters, she felt a strange sensation, as if someone were watching her. Watching her very intently. She twisted her head and met eyes with Jack. He was staring blankly at her, no emotion evident on his clear face. He rose slowly and shouted over the noise of the group.

"Alright! It's late. Everybody get to bed."

"Jack!"

"Oh, come on!"

"I said GET!" All the boys scrambled around the pit, retrieving their sticks, and hustled back to the shelters. Only Jack, Ralph, and Cassie were left at the fire pit. Jack strolled up to them and glared at Ralph.

"I'll take Cassie back to the shelters," he said quietly, but forcefully. Ralph glanced from Cassie to Jack.

"But I thought you didn't want to be her babysitter?"

"I've changed my mind."

"Jack, how are you going to take care of her if you're out hunting all day?"

"Who are you? Her mother? She's my responsibility, is she not?" Jack sneered. Ralph shifted his weight nervously. He looked over at Cassie, and shrugged apologetically. Cassie averted her gaze and crossed her arms, showing her displeasure. She wasn't bothered by Ralph not helping her back. She just didn't want Jack to help her. He was arrogant, callous, and somewhat aggressive. In other words, not the best company.

They waited silently as Ralph trotted back towards the shelters, barely visible in the darkness. Cassie could feel in the sand Jack shift and turn towards her. She wondered what happened to shoes. She couldn't remember taking them off. Oh, well. She didn't like shoes; they were always tight around her feet. She felt free without them.

Cassie reluctantly held up her arm, waiting for Jack to move them. Her unhurt leg was going numb. All her weight was leaning upon her right half of her body. Jack moved forward and placed his arm around her back. As Cassie placed her right arm around his neck, Jack leaned down and snaked his other arm behind her knees and lifted her up. Cassie squealed with surprise.

"What are you doing!? Put me down!" she demanded. She felt the lightness of Jack's breath against her right ear. Despite the coolness in the night air, Cassie's face became very warm.

"You wouldn't want to reopen your cut, would you?" he asked softly. He started walking towards the shelters. Cassie snorted.

"It's just a cut. I've gotten a lot of them. Piggy's wrong," she smiled deviously in the darkness. "I didn't know you followed Piggy's order so heartily." Jack stiffened. Apparently, she'd struck a nerve. Good.

"I don't follow anyone," he muttered.

"What about Ralph? He's the leader. You have to follow his orders," Cassie goaded.

They were coming upon the shelters. The moonlight reflected off the sand and illuminated the crude shelters. The surroundings played a gentle lullaby starring the tumble of the waves, the whistling of the wind, and the cooing of late birds. Jack set her down outside the same shelter she had rested in earlier that day. Inside were several bodies. Although they weren't moving, it was too soon for them to have fallen asleep.

Before Cassie could crawl inside, Jack tugged on her shirt and pulled her close to him.

"Ralph can't be leader forever," he whispered. Cassie elbowed him in the side. He chuckled and released the hold on her shirt. She carefully scurried inside the shelter and laid on the far edge closets to the wall. She could feel Jack nimbly settle himself between her and another resting figure.

What was Jack talking about? Why wouldn't Ralph be leader during their entrapment on the island? Surely he wasn't thinking to create a mutiny. Harmony between a leader and his people would ensure a rescue and survival. Chaos would lead to their destruction. Was Jack jealous? Was that why he didn't like Ralph? If Jack was jealous, Cassie felt sympathy for him. In her opinion, jealousy was worst than hate. Sometimes you couldn't control hate. It was understandable to hate someone who had stolen money from you, or had killed your sister. If you were jealous, it was your fault.

Cassie drifted into a trouble sleep.

* * *

"_Cassandra, we're not supposed to be in the forest" the little girl cried. Her head swiveled left and right, looking for any signs of human life. Her body trembled, and her dark blonde hair was matted with sweat. _

"_Just like we're not supposed to playing with swords?" Cassandra ran her hand over the sharp edge of the blade. Her eyes shined with an animalistic excitement. The little child's light green eyes were tearing up. _

"_Weren't we were going to play tag?" the child asked. _

"_We are Wenny," Cassie said. She held the point of the saber up to Wenny's throat. _

"_I'm it," she growled. Wennie's eyes widened. She turned and sprinted into the depths of the jungle. Cassandra ran after her. _

_The chase lasted quicker than Cassandra expected. She followed Wenny to a clearing in the jungle. Lush grass covered the ground. Colorful butterflies of green, blue, and purple filled the air. Cassandra wasted no time to plunge her saber through Wenny's pure white dress and beating heart. Cassie laughed triumphantly. Wenny sighed. _

"_I'm it." _

"_No. You're not it. You're dead."_

"_I'm not dead Cassandra. I'll never die." Tears built in Cassandra's eyes. She closed her wet eyes, and then shoved the sword deeper into Wenny's chest. _

"_Please, Wenny. Please die." Cassandra whispered. Wenny giggled. _

"_Oh Cassandra. I told you. I'll never die. I'm it now. I'm going to chase you forever. You'll never outrun me Cassandra."_

_--_

Cassie shot upwards. Before she could calm herself down from her nightmare, the tears were gushing down her face. She needed to leave the shelter before she woke anyone up and they asked her what was wrong. Especially Jack.

Cassie slowly pulled herself out of the shelter. She balanced herself on her good leg and eyed the beach. The sun was barely over the horizon, painting the waters of the ocean with yellows, oranges, and reds. Cassie wiped her eyes with the back of her hand. She couldn't hear anyone moving around, so she guessed she was the first one awake.

The forest looked inviting that morning. Cassie tested her weight on her injured leg. It was stiff, but otherwise it felt fine. So, she started walking.

She stopped walking once the beach was out of sight. Being surrounded by the colorful flora cheered Cassie up each second. Yet, it reminded her of the jungle in her dreams. Perhaps taking a walk wouldn't help at all. She sighed and slowly turned away. Since she could walk, she might be able to go swimming. That cheered her up completely and she forgot about her dream.

A branch snapped in the jungle. Cassie turned around sharply. The bushes were rustling, something moving towards her. Cassie looked around wildly, searching for a weapon. She wouldn't be able to outrun anything. A weapon was her only choice. There wasn't anything around. The rustling became louder. It was only a few feet away. In a wild attempt to protect herself, Cassie held up her fists and prepared to fight.

A small child burst from bushes and landed in a heap at Cassie's feet. He was a small boy with unruly brown hair. Looking closer, Cassie could see one of his thin legs covered in bright red blood. The boy was crying.

"You have to help me! It's going to get me!" it yelled hysterically. Cassie shook her head.

"What's trying to get you?" she asked. The child raised its head. A large pink birthmark covered part of his face. Dirt and tears covered the rest. His brown eyes were wild with fear.

"The Beast! The Beast is going to get me! It's going to get us all!"

* * *

AN: Alas! The Beast has entered the story. Cue mass hysteria and a power-hungry Jack. Next chappie, Jack goes hunting, but necessarily for the island's wild pigs. ;D

Thanks to redcatlover22, Starlove18, PeruvianChilli6498, and moonlit mage for their wonderful reviews!


	4. Chapter 4

**Disclaimer Time**: I don't own LotF, William Golding does. But if I did, I probably would have introduced females and twisted it into a romance novel for sure.

* * *

"The wickedness of others becomes our own wickedness because it kindles something evil in our own hearts."

-Carl Jung

* * *

"…there's a Beast trying to kill us?" Cassie asked. No, she wasn't fearing for her life, but she was making sure she heard correctly. A Beast unleashed upon the island? It was absurd, like the bedtime stories she heard when she was little. She was asleep in the jungle for three days. If there were a Beast, she wouldn't be alive.

"A terrible Beast! He bit me on the leg and chased me! We have to tell everyone!" he cried. Cassie stood before him, speechless. She was aware her heart was beating faster than usual. She bent down to the boy.

"Come along. We must fix your leg," she said soothingly. The child began to cry again and flail his limbs. Cassie let out a shriek and ducked her head. The child's breathing was quickening. His eyes were going crazy, moving to and fro without stopping. His body was beginning to shake.

Cassie needed to get help. She knew she wouldn't be strong enough to carry him back to the camp. His only chance was if she could run back and wake someone. She turned and began to run.

"Please…don't leave…me," the boy sputtered.

Cassie was already moving again, ignoring the boy's pleas. She ducked and dodged the forest and in less than a minute, was stumbling upon the beach. She kept running, running towards a familiar shelter. She could see a figure standing outside stretching themselves.

"Thank God," she whispered hoarsely. As the tall figure turned, Cassie took her thanks back.

"What the hell happened to you?" Jack asked. Cassie spread her arms and looked down at herself. Some of the boy's blood and dirt had rubbed onto her skirt and legs. She looked back up at Jack's snickering face.

"You think this is funny?!" she yelled. "There's a bleeding boy back there," she jabbed her thumb towards the jungle, "while you're chuckling your god damn head in!"

"Oh, calm down. He's not my problem."

"Damn it! I don't care if he's your problem! He needs you help. I can't carry him back!" Cassie yelled. Boy's heads were poking out of the shelters around them. Jack cocked his head to the side and answered in a mockingly sweet tone.

"That's not my fault either that you're scrawny."

Cassie became blinded with fury. She didn't know the extent of the child's wounds. He could be bleeding himself dry for all she knew. Meanwhile, Jackass Merridew was having a chuckle at the boy's ill expense. She felt like screaming and throwing a tantrum. She wanted to break something and scream some more. Bottom line, she'd had enough.

She curled her right hand into a fist and looked up at Jack. He stood there smirking down at her. She hoped he didn't like his pretty face.

WHAM!

Jack stumbled backwards, clutching his face, his eyes wide with surprise. Cassie stood with her fist still curled tight. She looked around at all the boy's faces. Her triumphant smile faded away. Ralph's mouth was agape, shaking his fair head with disbelief. The dark haired Simon looked at her with disappointment, as if punching Jack had been the wrong thing to do. It wasn't, wasn't it? The twins, Samneric, were huddled outside a shelter. Fear was in their eyes. Roger was furious. His glare burned her body. Piggy had a knowing look on his face as if he knew what she was going to do and what it would lead to. Cassie finally glanced up at Jack. He was shocked, speechless for once. He looked at her as if she were a purple monster. His reaction, although expected, hurt her the most.

His surprise melted quickly into hot anger. He leapt forward and tackled Cassie into the cool sand.

"You bitch!"

"Jackass!"

They were a frenzy of limbs and bodies rolling in the sand. At one point, Jack had Cassie pinned into the sand. His leering face inches from hers. She felt like socking him in the face again. With a furious cry she rammed her knee between his legs. His grip loosened enough for her to roll him underneath her. Their fighting lasted only a minute. Bigguns were dashing out of their shelter and pulling them apart. Simon and Ralph each had a grip upon Jack's arms with Samneric creating a wall in front of him. Meanwhile, Roger and Maurice had hold on both of Cassie's upper arms. She kicked and struggled against their hold.

"Let me go so I can kick his ass!" she screamed.

"The same way you thought you were strong enough to wrestle me?"

"The same way I punched your face!"

"Stop!" Ralph shouted. Both Jack and Cassie ceased their yelling. "Both of you stop this. We should be helping the boy Cassie found in the jungle. Now, if I catch you two fighting again, you'll be separated and find yourself doing extra chores around camp. Are we clear?"

Cassie could hear her grandmother's voice in her ear. _What were you thinking you gutter child! A lady _never _raises her voice, let alone commits physical violence. You have not defended yourself, but brought shame unto yourself and the family. For once, act civilized and respectful. You're behaving like a bloody savage! You may behave like a gutter rat, but you were not brought up as one. _Behave!

_Oh Grandmother _Cassie thought. _No girl can act like a lady forever. You only live once and I've already messed mine up._

"Fine. No fighting," Cassie said. Ralph looked expectantly over at Jack. He was grinning foolishly as if Ralph had told a hilarious joke instead of threatening him. He turned to Ralph. They were almost matched for height, probably nearly six foot. Cassie was five and half herself and they were just a few inches taller than her. Up close however, Ralph was a bit taller.

"Well, Jack?"

Jack smirked and shrugged. "Sure. You won't catch us fighting again." Cassie caught the emphasis on 'catch'. Oh dear…

"Good. Cassie, where was the boy?" Cassie pointed towards the trees behind the shelters and to the left. Ralph, accompanied with Maurice and Simon, took off towards the tree line. Cassie was left standing in the open, a bit unnerved by the stares of the remaining boys. She knew the little boy would need something for his leg, so she left to find some water and her sweater.

By the time she returned everyone was gathered around the little boy, listening to what he was saying. Cassie had to elbow her way through the mass of boys to reach the heart. The boy that was 'attacked' was deep into his story.

"As I was walking back, it attacked! It wrapped its long arms around my body and pulled me down. It bit into my leg, but I wasn't scared. I raced back here to tell you all. If we don't do something it's going to get all of us!"

Cassie kneeled down next to the child's leg. Now that she could properly look at it, it wasn't as bad as it looked. She dipped a sleeve of her sweater into a water filled coconut shell and began washing the blood away. She glanced up at the child's face. He was pale and looked shaken.

"What's your name?" she asked.

"George."

"George. That's a nice name. George, it looks like you cut yourself, like you fell on a rock or something. It doesn't appear as if anything bit you." Cassie gestured towards the red line across the George's leg. There weren't any teeth marks or chunks of his leg missing. He'd probably gotten scared and fell. There wasn't anything on the island except them.

The boy's light eyes widened. "No, there was a monster! It had long, tentacle arms!"

"There was no Beast. You were only frightened by the creepers," Piggy said. Ralph nodded in agreement.

"There is no Beast George," Ralph added sternly. The child was shaking his head.

"There was! There was! He's going to catch and eat us, I swear!"

"George, logically, a Beast could not survive on this island. There wouldn't be enough food. Plus, we would have seen it," said Piggy. A few of the boys murmured with agreement.

"Plus, if there was a Beast, it would have eaten us by now," Cassie added. She lifted her head from George's knee to see fear in all the smaller boy's eyes. Simon had one hand of his eyes and was shaking his head. Piggy was glaring at her from behind his ridiculous spectacles. Jack was snickering. Perhaps she should leave it to Piggy and Ralph to convince the boys.

"What if it's hunting us as we speak? What if it's waiting for us in the jungle so it can eat us one at a time?" someone spoke from within the crowd of boys. Ralph frowned.

"There is no Beast. What kind of Beast leaves no evidence? We haven't heard it or seen any tracks. No indication such a thing exists."

As the debate between Beast and No-Beast continued, Cassie couldn't help but imagine her own battle in her mind.

_Say something encouraging! Tell them there's no Beast. Tell them it's their imagination. The fear of the unknown is playing with their minds. Tell them Cassie!_

_Nothing you could say Cassandra will convince them. There will always be the doubt in their minds. You know there's no Beast, so what's the problem with encouraging their fears? So they will afraid. Good. They should be afraid of something. You'll know it doesn't exist. You'll be brave to them. Tell them the Beast is real._

Cassie interrupted an argument happening Piggy and George.

"What if the Beast's living in the trees? It wouldn't leave any trail. It would explain why it hasn't bothered us on the beach. There aren't enough trees," Cassie said nonchalantly. All at once the boys began to shout.

"She's right! It must be living in the trees!"

"We're all goners!"

"That's ridiculous. What kind of Beast would live in the trees? A giant squirrel?"

"We should burn all the trees!"

The sound of a horn interrupted the squabbling. It silenced all the boys and left some covering their ears. Ralph stood in the middle of the circle with a large pink and cream shell pressed against his lips. He lowered the shell and the horn faded from the air. He raised one hand into the air to catch everyone's attention.

"Listen to me! There. Is. No. Beast. Not on the island, in the trees, in the water, or living in the sand beneath our feet. George, you cut your leg on a rock. You didn't get attacked by a Beast. Now, we have more important things to do than worry about imaginary creatures, such as watching the fire. Don't you want to be rescued? To be sleeping in your own bed instead of sleeping in the sand under palm leaves? We are going to forget about the Beast and focus our energies on surviving and watching the rescue fire. So there'll be no more talk about this Beast," Ralph ordered.

There was a silence surrounding the group of boys, plus Cassie. She supposed some of the boys were doubtful about the existence of the Beast. She, on the other hand, was studying the reaction of the other boys, the ones who didn't believe in the Beast. They were admiring Ralph. Even Piggy looked content with his speech. They weren't looking at Ralph, a fellow stranded boy, but as their leader.

Cassie glowered at Ralph. She wanted to be him right now. She wanted everyone's respect. She wanted everyone to listen to what she said and do what she commanded. She wanted their obedience. She wanted everyone to think she was the best. She wanted everybody to look up at her as their leader.

Jack broke the silence.

He turned away from Ralph, pushed past the circle of boys, and disappeared into the jungle.

Slowly, the rest of the boys followed suit. Some headed in the direction of the fruit trees, some headed towards the ocean, and others went back to their shelters to obtain a few more minutes of sleep. Even George stood up and walked away with a few boys that looked about his age.

Cassie was left alone holding her now bloody sweater. She didn't know what to do. She wasn't hungry enough to find fruit. She didn't know anyone well enough to hang with them. She remembered how nice a swim sounded to her earlier. She tossed her sweater aside and walked down the beach away from where the boys were swimming. If she was going to get wet, she wanted to be alone where she could strip off more of her clothes.

After the events of that morning, it would feel nice to be alone, too.

* * *

The sea was alight with the morning sun. Waters of aquamarine, cerulean, and sea green were sparkling in the rays of the burning sun, illuminating them to form a watery kaleidoscope. They shimmered with temptation, luring every soul to swim in its colorful delights. Each frothy wave pulled gently at your toes. The sounds of the waves washing upon the shore were like the songs of the sirens, encouraging you deeper into the depths of the ocean. The waters of the ocean were enticing.

Cassie sat in the damp sand, legs extended, leaned back, absorbing the chilly touch of the waves. They crashed beautifully in front of her outstretched legs and seeped up to her feet. Just as her feet were covered with the shimmery water, the waves receded leaving her wanting more.

Growing up, Cassie had many accomplishments. She knew how to read and write. She could perform imitations of Grandmother McCartney flawlessly. She knew the woods behind her house like the back of her hand. She was the first person to cross Dead Man's Canyon on the fallen, rotten log blindfolded. She spent the night in the old Firestone cemetery and didn't have her soul stolen. One thing she had never mastered was swimming.

Cassie didn't grow up near the ocean. Of course, during the summer, everyone in town was allowed to swim in the pond in Blue Moon Park. Cassie had wanted to go swimming like her classmates, but all her classmates had mothers, fathers, aunts and uncles, or friends to swim with them. Cassie only had her father, her father that worked all day, every day for England. Her only other family living close to her was her grandmother, Mackenzie McCartney, referred to as Grandmother McCartney and the Hag of Hawthorn Road. So Cassie lived through her childhood without learning to swim.

So, now she sat in soggy sand, having to settle for the lapping of the waves against her feet. She considered wading deeper, but her fear of drowning kept her on land.

As the next wave sloshed around her feet, a figure plopped down next to Cassie.

"Hello, Cassie."

"Jack. Do you often intrude upon a person's private space?" Jack narrowed his eyes.

"It's a beach. It's not very private."

"Fine then. Do you often intrude?"

"I'm not intruding. And have you been here the whole time?"

"Yes. Why ask?"

"That would mean you've been sitting here for several hours. Why are you a mile down the beach? Did you not think anyone would be looking for you?"

"Your concern's touching. You spent the last couple hours trying to find me? I suppose you're not as good as hunter as you think you are." Cassie scoffed.

"For starters, I haven't been looking for 'several hours.' You're just at the bottom of my list of priorities," Cassie's eyes brightened angrily. "Secondly, a dolt could have followed your footsteps along the beach. Anyone with a nut for a brain would have figured that out. And lastly, why the hell go down the beach if you're just going to sit in the sand like a sodden shoe?"

"Well, err…" _Because I can't swim_. "Because I…err…can't swim in my skirt! It would drag me down," Cassie waved her hand at her skirt, falling midway down her calf. Jack smirked deviously.

"Take it off then."

"That would be highly inappropriate and unladylike!"

"Oh, okay. But physical violence is a thumbs-up?"

"I'm no worse than you! At least I show concern for the wounded like a civilized member of society. I'm not an indifferent savage."

"Savage, huh? This 'savage' here, hasn't physically assaulted anyone here. In addition to that, I do care for the wounded. I carried your ungrateful ass back to camp, didn't I?" Cassie blushed a light pink. _Drat _she thought.

"If you care, why not jump to the rescue when someone needs it?"

"Jesus. I said I cared. I didn't say I cared for everyone. And, if you could decease running your enormous trap like a caffeinated monkey, I have a question for you."

"My trap?!"

"God, you never stop. If I'm so uncaring, cruel, and uncivilized, might I asked why you find it amusing to torment the littleuns into thinking there's a Beast." Cassie blinked.

"Err…I…I never said that was a Beast." She stammered.

"You implied it, my dear. We both know that you know there's no Beast. So, and I'm only driven by my curiosity, not by concern for the children's fears, why you would encourage the Beast's existence. You're so defensive about acting caringly; I wonder why you're a hypocrite."

Jack leaned back into the sand with his arms behind his head, a smile on his face. He looked perfectly serene. Cassie, on the other hand, was having a miniature panic attack inside her mind.

_Oh shoot. Shoot. Shoot. Shoot. Calm down, Cass. Just say…you thought it was funny. No, that sounds even worse than purposely instilling fear for the sake of fear. They need something to fear? No. That sounds conceited. Maybe I don't have to answer. Maybe he'll just let it go. Oh gosh, if Jack noticed I'm sure someone else did! Aauugg!_

There were several different types of smarts, at least in Cassie's perspective. Piggy, for one, was the classic intelligence smart. He seemed most likely to know boring facts, such as the capital of Greece or the definition of defenestration. Ralph was smart when it came to leadership and command. He knew what needed to be said and what needed to be done. They wouldn't have picked up on her sudden switch of sides, would they?

Jack, on the other hand, wasn't seeping with intelligence or leadership abilities. He appeared more…cunning. Sly. Clever. In other words, able to plan and deceive skillfully for what he wanted. Plus, when it came to an area of interest, nothing seemed to pass by without going unnoticed. So, in this case, what was interesting him? Was it Cassie's hypocrisy, or the effect of the Beast upon the littluns?

Which ever the answer was, she still needed a response to Jack's demanding question. It needed to enough to satisfy his interest, but not enough to make her seem like a heartless savage.

"Pass." _What_? Cassie mentally slapped her forehead.

"Try again."

"Why does it matter?" Cassie asked. Without waiting for an answer, she stood up and brushed the grains of sand off her clothes. As she turned to leave, Jack caught hold of her right hand. In a whirl of movement, Cassie founded herself on her back near the ocean shore with Jack above her. He smirked down at her. She glared back at him.

_Cassie. Compose yourself. Sternly tell the young man to let up off you. Be polite, but forceful. Be a lady for heaven's sake!_

_Oh, come on Cassandra. Really, are you going to let him pin you down? Kick him off. Bite him. Do whatever it takes to break free. Worry later, fight now. _

As Cassie debated how to react, Mother Nature took care of the situation for her. Lying underneath Jack gave Cassie the best view of a particularly tall wave. It tumbled downward onto Jack and Cassie, and startled Jack enough for Cassie to wriggle free. The wave surged up the beach, and then peacefully receded back into the ocean. The receding water revealed Cassie and Jack both sputtering for air. Both of them were soaked with salt water. Cassie felt like she was wearing an extra ten pounds. All of her clothes were sticking to her body, especially her heavy skirt.

A shadow appeared in front of Cassie's sight. She looked up through her soaked tendrils of hair to see Jack sneering down at her.

"So, wanna give me a good answer?" Cassie clawed her wet brown hair out of her face.

"Why do you want to know so badly?"

"You want the littluns to fear an imaginary Beast. That's not odd enough?" Cassie stood up, crossed her arms, and raised her nose into the air.

"It's none of your business, so buzz off."

"Okay." Just as quickly he had pinned her in the sand, he had her in his arms. Cassie shrieked with protest. Jack only chuckled. He was carrying them into deeper water. The beautiful water earlier now seemed much darker, almost black. The water was up to Jack's waist. Cassie shook and squealed angrily.

"Take me back. Now!" Jack shook his dark red head and grinned.

"I'll rephrase the question. What do you think you'll gain from creating fear amongst the littluns?"

_Everything._

_Destruction. Excitement. Power. Thrills. Division. Obedience. _

"Don't be a dolt. Nothing's gain from fear. Absolutely…nothing…" Cassie's voice faltered slightly. There was a change in Jack's step. He wasn't striding across the ocean floor, but inching slowly forward, bobbing up and down…

"Can you not touch the bottom?! Take me back now and I won't tell Ralph what you're doing." Cassie threatened. Jack cocked his head to the side.

"Doing what? You said you could swim. So, to review, you wanted the littluns to fear an imaginary monster because 'pass' and nothing can be gained through fear?"

_Alright. That _might _not be entirely true…_

"Yes."

"Alright." Jack dropped her.

Cassie sank faster than an anchor. For a whole second, she was numb with shock. The second passed and her mind screamed "Get to the surface!" Her heavy skirt complete immobilized her legs. If she tried kicking them, they just became more entangled in the lengthy, bulky material. So she flailed her arms feebly.

Her head barely broke the surface. Cassie opened her mouth and breathed in water and air. She could make out a figure standing barely out of reach. She was sinking again and her arms were tiring. Perhaps if she wasn't wearing such bulky clothes, she could make it to shore. She was tired though. And heavy. And panicking.

_I'm going to die! I'm going to sink and drown!_

"I…I can't…can't…!" Cassie's head sank under the water.

_Swim. _

She spiraled downward a few feet into the sandy bottom of the ocean. She outstretched her arms and clawed for the surface. She couldn't reach it. Her lungs were almost on the verge to explode plus her stomach was achy from the massive intake of salt water. The salt water was also causing her eyes to burn. She took one last look at the sun before shutting them.

* * *

_Cassie was running through the forest. Wenny was catching up in her pursuit, but Cassie was faster. _

_She tripped over a rock in the path and tumbled head first in a stream. She sputtered for air and turned around. Wenny was standing on the edge of the stream. Her long, delicate fingers were extended towards Cassie. In the back of her mind, something warned her not to touch those fingers. _

_Wenny was crying. _

"_You're-"_

_Cassie was pulled out of the puddle. _

* * *

She didn't open her eyes until she couldn't feel the push and pull of the ocean. She was pulled onto shore. The hotness of the sand wakened her mind. She began coughing up mouthfuls of sea water. Opening her mouth depleted the rest of her strength.

She was placed against something soft. Whatever it was, it was _very _comfortable. She wished she could sleep against it every night. Cassie wanted to know what she was up against. She groggily opened her eyes and was met with a beam of sunlight. She waited until her eyes adjusted to the sudden brightness before looking at what she was leaning against.

Jack peered down at her from where she rested against his chest.

"You didn't mention you couldn't _swim._" Cassie knew she needed to conserve her energy. Arguing would be a waste of what energy she had left.

"My skirt weighed me down," she replied hoarsely. Jack grinned impishly.

"I told you you should have taken it off."

"Haha. I thought you didn't care about people?" She closed her eyes.

"You're my responsibility. That's different. It kinda makes me your…guardian, I guess." Jack replied scornfully. Cassie laughed weakly.

"You throw me into danger, then save me from it. That's horrible." The sun's rays were soothing against her wet skin. She was drifting into sleep.

"I saved you though, didn't I?"

* * *

AN: Alas! Finished. Behold the corny fluff attempt. . A lot of dialogue for this chapter, and I'm not great with dialogue. This chappie was written so many times. Hopefully, it was humorous to read.

NEWS: Due to a change of thought, the title's going to change from "Light Upon Man" to "Wicked". For more info why, visit my main page.

Thanks to redcatlover22, StarLove18, BloodredCrimsonhands, bodanger, and hecate0808 for their fabulous reviews! They were wonderful!


	5. Chapter 5

Arrg! School + 5 honors classes + active participation in my school's top 4 clubs + romance + sports = negative time. Gah! Seriously, just when I thought high school couldn't use of more time, BAM; it kicked it up a notch. I deserved to be scolded for my hiatus. D:

**Disclaimer Time**: I don't own LotF, William Golding does. But if I did, I probably would have introduced females and twisted it into a romance novel for sure.

"The wickedness of others becomes our own wickedness because it kindles something evil in our own hearts."

-Carl Jung

The highlight of Cassie's day was watching the sunset. She buried her bum into the cooling sand just beyond the fingers of the waves and soaked up the last of the sun's rays. The warm gold and orange lights of the sky mixed with the cool blues and greens of the ocean. Just as the sun dipped into the horizon, the warm and cool colors mixed to form a millisecond of brilliant color. Then, the world was engulfed in the blackness of night.

The sight of the sunset every evening awed Cassie. The most brilliant blend of colors Cassie could imagine occurred just as the day slipped away. She heard of the proverb "The night is darkest just before the dawn." Did it work the other way around? Was the day the brightest, full of color, and breath-taking just before the night? She knew what the proverb meant. Even in the worst circumstances, there's hope. What about the sunset? Did it mean anything?

Cassie didn't have time to debate over proverbs and sunsets. She wasn't different from everyone else on the island, figuratively, of course, which meant she had to contribute somehow to their survival on the island. Ralph had suggested that she kept out of the jungle and away from Jack and his hunting posse. Ever since Jack had brought her back to camp after she nearly drowned, the tension had been tight between them.

Ralph didn't have to apply much effort to keep them apart. Jack spent a majority of his waking hours hunting the wild pigs living on the island. Cassie's daylight hours were spent with the dark haired lad, Simon. A week ago, on the same afternoon she had nearly drowned, she had seen Simon in the fruit trees pulling fruit down for the smaller boys. Without an explanation, Cassie tagged along with Simon. She helped him help the littluns. She brought them water, gave them fruit, washed their scratches, etc. Being around Simon was different than being around Jack. She felt more…peaceful. He was such a peaceful, empathetic individual she couldn't help admiring him. He felt like a brother.

Back at her home, Cassie had grown up somewhat wilder than her classmates. She played in the woods, read books, and sassed her grandmother. She had to be doing something, always. If she sat still long enough, it gave the poisons of her past enough time to creep up on her from behind.

Simon wasn't sure why Cassie liked to be around him. He could tell it wasn't because she wanted to help the littluns. Everything she did around them was performed half-heartily. They didn't speak much, so it couldn't have been anything about _him._ There had to be something though.

He didn't know why, but whenever he was doing nothing, she seemed the happiest. When he was finished with the littluns, Simon liked to sit and think. Just think. Cassie would usually join him. Leaning against a tree trunk, she looked serene. Simon didn't mind her presence. He was never blessed with a sister, and so Cassie became the closes to one he knew.

The sky was beginning to darken slightly. It had been hotter than the usual mugginess and Cassie had endured the triple digit degrees in her sleeveless blouse and severed skirt, currently cut to knee length. All day she enviously glared at all the boys who were able to strut about in the boiling heat in only a pair of shorts. Now, the temperature was cooling off and she wasn't sweating like a hog.

She was heading towards the shelters in search of some scraps of her sweater. Her leg wasn't entirely healed, but the wound was free of any sign of infection. It was starting to throb though; most likely from the intense heat. Cassie was hoping that wrapping a piece of water soaked sweater around the wound would ease the pain.

As she crawled out of her shelter, she overheard Ralph and Jack arguing a short distance away near the shore. They weren't shouting, but their voices weren't quiet either. Cassie watched Ralph throw up his arms in exasperation.

"Everybody has to watch the fire Jack. I don't care if it means you won't get to hunt your silly pigs. Keeping a fire going, creating a signal, getting _rescued_…that's what's important. So I expect you on the top of that cliff with a fire blazing around you for the rest of this afternoon or God help me you'll regret it."

Cassie walked away before she could hear Jack's retort. She didn't want to become involved in another conflict. It was funny how even away from all the problems of the world they still created arguments against each other.

She walked into the tropical forest past the fruit grove and towards the freshwater stream where everybody drank. The sun dappled the crystalline stream water and created a scene that resembled a photograph out of a travel brochure. Cassie smirked. All that was missing from the view was a clean elderly couple smiling with thumbs up. She knelt next to the water and dipped her sweater underneath the glassy surface. Once it was properly moist she slapped it against her thigh and moaned with relief. The cool moisture felt heavenly against the warmth that radiated off her injured skin.

She glanced around her surroundings. Even though the sun was due to set in a few hours, the temperature hadn't dropped enough for her taste. A leafy tree with an abundance of branches grew roughly ten feet from the stream. Cassie raised herself from the edge and walked to the bottom of the mighty tree. Staring up into its leafy canopy she felt a stab of nostalgia. She remembered the summer days at home where she spent hours playing in the trees around her house.

With a grunt of determination, Cassie leapt and dug her fingers onto the lowest branch. She wildly kicked at the air and slowly pulled herself onto the branch. Already the air felt cooler and a sense of familiarity spread throughout her body. She climbed up two…three…four branches. She noticed her leg throbbing beneath its wrap, but she was enjoying the feel of bark beneath her toes and air rippling through her clothes too much to stop.

The next branch up the tree was too far out of her reach even if she jumped. She wrapped her arms around as much as the middle of the tree she could and arched her neck around to look at the other side. There was a limb on the other side that she could reach if she maneuvered her position. Within three minutes she was lounging a good distance up the tree. She leaned cautiously against the trunk and dangled one leg over the side of the protruding limb she rested on. The side of the tree she was on had fewer branches, but as long as she came down the way she came up she wouldn't have any problems.

A rustle could be heard on the forest floor. Cassie picked herself up and sat on her haunches. Between the green leaves she spied a head of ginger hair. She rolled her eyes and stuck her tongue out at the unsuspecting teenager. She'd just wait until he left then-

WHAM!

Something hard struck Cassie in the back. The force caused her to topple forwards and fall like a rag doll through the branches. One of her outstretched hands clenched onto a branch, but with only one grip on the thick limb accompanied with sweaty palms, she slipped off. She screeched wildly and clawed the empty air. She was falling upside down. She felt smaller branches painfully whip her back. She was screaming, but even her high pitched scream didn't accurately match the frenzy inside her mind.

The back of her knees collided with the lowest branch on that side of the tree. The momentum flipped her forward in time for her collision with the earth. Her view changed from the upper branches of the tree to the oncoming earth. But, before her limp body collided into the ground below, it collided with a surprised boy with red hair.

She fell on top of Jack and both of them crashed to the ground.

Cassie didn't register she was on top of Jack until she opened her clenched eyes. She cautiously peeked an eye open, but immediately both eyes widen. She and Jack's face lay merely inches away from each other. She met Jack's blue eyes with her green eyes. Awareness returned to her body and with that became aware that she was lying on top of his bare chest. Jack glared up at her.

"You are a clumsy idiot," he muttered vehemently.

"It wasn't my fault. Something…something hit me…and…and…" She couldn't control her speech. The space between them felt warmer than any degree of temperature she had lived through and twice as unsettling. The tension between them was still there, but it had changed. She couldn't think let alone move herself off of him. Her mind, no, her entire body seemed to have shut down. The sum of the situation could only be described as awkward.

Jack smirked and cocked an eyebrow. "You do a piss poor job at spying on someone."

The momentary paralysis was over. Cassie sat up and crossed her arms.

"I wasn't spying. I was in the tree, and I fell. Something hard in me in the back. It's not like I wanted to fall out of a tree."

"What in the hell would hit you in the back and make you fall out of a tree? An angry bird?" Jack started laughing, and Cassie could feel her face becoming warm.

"It's not funny, Jack! Someone else made me fall out!"

"Who the hell would-!" A wild pig emerged from the undergrowth and trotted to the stream. Both of the teenagers were startled by the boar's appearance. The creature turned its head. It spied both of the humans lying not twenty feet away. It raised its head and roared angrily and began to charge.

Cassie was frozen with fear. Any warmth in the air had evaporated and was replaced with numbing terror. Jack shoved against her frozen shoulders and she fell off him. They both scrambled out of the path of the wild pig. Cassie saw Jack pull his hunting knife out of a loop on his belt. The pig charged over the spot where they had lain seconds before. Jack kept his eyes on the pig's body.

"Cassie, get out of here _now. _Get back up that tree," he commanded. The pig was turning around. Cassie scrambled to her feet and furiously placed her hands on her hips.

"I'm not climbing back up the tree I fell forty feet out of."

"Fine! Get out of the way then!" The boar was making its second charge towards Jack. Already Cassie could tell that its powerful, charging tusks were no match for Jack's hunting knife. Cassie raised her arms and waved them rapidly to catch the pig's attention.

"HEY! Hey pig!" She could see the pig look over at her distraction. She stopped her crazy movements. She wasn't positive, but she thought the pig attacking them was the same pig she had encountered a week earlier on the island.

The pig roared and changed course heading toward Cassie's weaponless body. She stumbled backwards, but there was no ledge this time, only the trunk of a tree.

There was a whirl of brown and red in front of Cassie. The pig's squeal sliced the air and the animal fell in a cloud of brown dust. Cassie raised her forearms to protect her eyes from the grit. The dust settled and she lowered her arms. Before her lay the boar's motionless body with Jack slung over the top. His hunting knife was wedged into its head. Deep red blood oozed from the wound.

_That could have been my blood _she thought. She should have turned her head away from the unpleasant sight, but she couldn't help but stare at the dead animal and think with deviant fascination what it would have felt like to drive the knife into the pig herself.

AN: Arrg! Short chapter, but getting back into it. Slowly, but surely. I'm thinking that I need to either 1) get some extreme action going or 2) get extreme romance going for next chapter. -I'm awkward with both though!-

Oh well. It's all just fanfiction, right? If you want a non-cheesy and/or non-awkward story, read the real book :p


	6. Chapter 6

I am deeply sorry for such a hiatus. But honestly, I am horrible at time management. Horrible. My resolution is to improve upon that and try to update at least once a month. No more delays. Let's begin again.

**Disclaimer Time**: I don't own LotF, William Golding does. But if I did, I probably would have introduced females and twisted it into a romance novel for sure.

"The wickedness of others becomes our own wickedness because it kindles something evil in our own hearts."

-Carl Jung

The air was viscous with delight. Jack has killed yet _another _pig. The ginger was rising in esteem amongst the adolescents. Even though he wasn't the tallest of the plane wrecked misfits on the island, he was still substantially taller than all the littluns and had a few inches on every other older boy. Slowly, the red-haired lad was beginning to tower over the members of the island and only a few were catching on.

Cassie had begrudgingly offered to assist Jack in carrying the pig back to camp, but he declined her extension of aid with a snort of amusement and dragged the pig back by himself. At least, he dragged it about as far as the beach, and then many of the older boys carried the prize the rest of the way while Jack sauntered in the lead.

He dictated that the bloody pig be dropped beside the fire pit on the beach. The carcass was flung without care in the sand, and a golden plume sprayed the air. Without minutes, Ralph appeared and pushed his way through the ring of Jack's admirers. He examined the lifeless pig and turned to Jack.

"What the bloody hell is this?" he demanded. Jack smirked.

"It's a fucking pig, poof." he shot back. Ralph fumed. He raised his index finger and stabbed it into Jack's chest.

"I _told _you not to go hunting. Your responsibility was to watch over the fire. You were forbidden to go hunting. Do not think for a second your action will not have repercussions, Jack."

"I wasn't hunting! I was with Cassie, and it was attacking us! I had no choice." Jack protested. Ralph's eyes widened, and he turned to Cassie who was standing beside Jack. It was as if he just noticed her presence.

"What were you doing? Why were you were Jack? Why were you preventing him from doing his designated duty?" Cassie was taken aback by his severe inquiries. She was unaccustomed to Ralph's discontent being directed at her. She opened her mouth, but she wasn't sure what to say. So, she closed it.

"Answer me!"

"Hey! Stop yelling at her!" Jack moved between Ralph and Cassie. Cassie stoop on tiptoe and peered over Jack's shoulder at Ralph.

"It wasn't her fault, so I suggest you shut your mouth." Ralph and Jack glared at each other for a full minute, maybe even an eternity.

"Fine. Cook your pig. I'll go watch the fire tonight. But this isn't over Jack. I will find you in the morning, and we will have a more private discussion." Ralph turned and stalked off with Piggy trailing behind. Jack raised his hunting knife into the air, a victory pump, and shouted "Let the feast commence" and drove the weapon deep into the neck of the slain animal.

Cassie had nothing else to do that afternoon, and so she scooted some meters away and watched the butchering of the boar. Jack had done most of the work. He slowly, but steadily, carved off chunks of meat from the pig's swollen body and laid them on large palm leaves for roasting later.

The day was waning, and the asphyxiating heat that embraced the children was weakening into a more comfortable cool. The setting sun was a rainbow of color; dark red, bright orange, cool yellow, pale green, sky blue, and a tinge of lavender staining the darkening sky. Although Cassie ached for her home, she had never witnessed a sunset quite like the ones on the island.

Ralph and Piggy were not in sight when the fire was created and the meat was cooking. Cassie settled gingerly down in the sand beside Simon. She asked him about the Ralph and Piggy's whereabouts.

"Ralph and Piggy went up to watch the fire. He seemed a bit disgruntled, and Piggy was not too content that Jack disobeyed orders." Cassie nodded and didn't respond. She was concerned about getting rescued but perhaps Ralph was over exaggerating the survival of their fire. It wasn't as if they would all perish if the fire went out. They could simply we start a new one. Big deal. Her and Jack were nearly killed, and all Ralph was worried about was a pile of embers. Pfft.

The feast continued through the night. Every boy, little and big, ate their share of the hefty boar while Jack engrossed them all with anecdotes. As expected, Jack's deeds in the retelling of the kill were stretched slightly. The boar was bigger, the fight was bloodier, and Cassie's role was diminished. The fire, which had peaked into an inferno early into the night, had now died back down into glowing embers. The littluns began to fall like flies into slumber where they sat. Only the bigguns remained awake. Cassie gazed drearily around the fire at the boys still awake. Adrenaline from the night's early excitement had worn off, and she could tell everybody was close to falling asleep. Simon muttered a word of goodnight beside her and leaned backward into the shadowy sand.

The last handful of awake lads followed suit. Maurice, SamnEric, everybody else were lying backward in the sand and murmuring sounds of exhaustion. A wind blew bitterly across the beach, and the light of the fire twinkled out. Cassie rubbed her arms and gradually settled into the chilled sand. An inky figure stood over her, and she was shaken awake from the beginnings of spiraling sleep. The blackened figure was Jack. He gripped her forearms and pulled her upwards against him. Cassie was not content with his interruption.

"What do you want?" she murmured. Her eyes blinked sleepily, and she felt sick with exhaustion. She just wanted to sleep, and all of a sudden Jack was in her way, again. The said ginger slowly, but forcibly, pulled the tired and cranky girl towards his spot in the ring of slumbering boys. When they reached the spot where Jack had been seated during the festivities, he gently pulled the girl down into the sand. Cassie just sat in the sand and stared blankly at him.

"I'm supposed to be keeping an eye on you, girl. So just sleep right here and don't go wandering off in the morning." He didn't wait for a reply. He spread out in the sand on his back with his hands tucked beneath his head and proceeded to drift away. Cassie huffed quietly to herself, but complied to his order. It didn't matter to her where she slept as long as she slept at all tonight. She rolled onto her side, facing away from Jack. In the murkiness, she eyed the unconscious shapes of snoozing males. A prickling discomfort jabbed at her chest. She breathed in and exhaled, but the odd feeling didn't ebb. She focused her bleary eyes until she located the source of uneasiness. Amidst the pairs of closed eyes were an opened pair. Cassie gazed wide-eyed at the pair of hatred filled sockets.

In an effort to escape the anxiety building up in her chest, Cassie rolled over away from Roger. She tightened her body in attempts to appear smaller. Perhaps if she willed it enough, she would become invisible in the obscurity of the night. Her nose barely brushed against Jack's bare side, and she hoped Jack was sound asleep.

Merridew's right eye cracked open at the unexpected light contact at his side. He examined the body at his right side, and closed his eye with slight satisfaction. The island was covered with an ebony blanket except for a pale, flickering light in the distance where Ralph and Piggy were stationed. But, how can the light withstand so much darkness without snuffing out?

By the time Cassie awoke, it was almost midday. The sun was close to being overhead, and it was just as hot that day as it was yesterday. Cassie lazily rubbed her eyes to remove all traces of sand. Looking around at the deserted fire pit, she wondered mentally where all the boys had gone.

She picked herself up and, out of habit, brushed herself free of wrinkles that were created in the night.

_Why am I trying to smooth the wrinkles? _she thought. With slight hesitation, she ceased. She lowered her hands back down to her sides. There wasn't a need any more to look presentable. She leisurely strolled down the beach towards the faint splashing and squealing of boys. She saw many of the littluns frolicking in the waves with Simon watching over them from the shore. She waved to Simon who waved back merrily. In the distance, Cassie picked out the bodies of Roger and Maurice. They appeared to be bullying a pair of the younger boys. She halted, and turned towards the jungle. She delicately stepped through the brush to where the fruit grove was.

The tall, exotic trees were still blooming with fruit despite the vigorous appetites of the several dozen youths. Fruits of gold, cherry, and orange hung plump the trees. The morning wetness was gone from their skin, but the delicacies looked appealing nonetheless. Cassie reached up and plucked a small colored fruit from a limb and popped it in her mouth. Delicious.

She continued her walk through the jungle, attempting to follow the stream. Her thoughts tried to make mental comments about the vegetation, the heat, and despair of their situation, but ultimately, like a vicious circle, her thoughts wound their way back to a certain smug, mysterious, red-haired boy. Cassie was bewildered. How could someone strive to steer clear of someone so vile, yet find themselves, no matter how small of weak, somewhat seeking them? She was _attracted _to him, no. Not at all.

Cassie raised one of her hands and skimmed it over the tops of ferns as she gingerly stepped through. Undeniably, he was different from the other boys. Simon made her feel rather safe, but not physically. He was such a kind-hearted soul; she could almost feel his goodness. She felt content, all worries gone, when near him. Ralph was a natural leader of everybody, and he did an okay job with it. He was kind of like a fire. Strong, and at times, he prevented chaos on the island as if he was a torch in locked tomb. Piggy was intelligent with his facts and figures. He was indeed logical and sane. Roger, on the other hand, was someone to truly avoid. His baleful personality seemed more threatening than any creature on the island. Cassie picked up a bright purple flower and twirled it in her fingers. How could she describe Jack?

Were her and Jack opposite poles of magnets? Were they kindred spirits? He could be wicked at times, then again, she had been too. Cassie shook her head firmly. Jack was nothing to her. Nothing. She was being absurd. He was just another wild boy to disregard. Cassie turned around and headed back towards the beach.

Cassie vowed to be productive in order to take her mind off things, and she knew exactly what she wanted to do.

Cassie walked steadily down the beach away from the habitual congregation grounds of the boys. Her intent was this: to teach herself how to swim. She kicked at the sand as she walked. Heights didn't frighten her nor did the dark, but something about water caused a fluttering in her chest and a clamminess on her palms. The ocean especially. It was so strong, and she was so small.

She reached a spot a considerable distance from the boys. It was far enough to where nobody would see her and be derisive, yet (hopefully) close enough that someone might hear her if she got into trouble. She knew though that even if she did scream nobody would reach her in time and there was the possibility that a bigun would be too far away to hear in the first place. Nevertheless, it was comforting to be able to see and distantly hear the splashing and shenanigans of the boys.

Cassie stepped gingerly towards the waves. The water caressed her toes and gently tugged on them as the waves were receded backwards. Slowly, she moved until the water was up to her ankles, and then up to half her calf. But she stopped. She looked out to where the water began to lose its aquamarine shade and morph into a midnight blue. She remembered clearly the close encounter. The sinking heaviness, the panic, the frenzy of trying to grab the surface when knowingly there is nothing solid to clutch onto. Cassie couldn't convince herself to move forward. There were too many what ifs, too many possibilities of a reprise performance.

"Don't you think I've saved you enough?" Cassie whirled around and saw Jack standing casually several feet from her. She didn't hear any sarcasm in his voice. On the contrary, he seemed almost pleasant.

"Who says I need saving, Jack. I'm standing in six inches of water."

"Well, it just seems whenever we're together I'm having to prevent you from getting yourself killed." His lips curved upward slightly. A smirk. Cassie huffed.

"I can't get into any trouble in six inches of water. So you can go away now." She turned her back to him.

"That's what I came to talk to you about though."

"Oh, you're going away? Wonderful, when does the celebration party start?"

"No, I'm not going away, and that's what I wanted to talk to you about." Cassie turned back around to face him. She didn't understand.

"Why? Why would you want to talk about _not _going away? That seems a little redundant."

"Here's the thing. You want me to go away and to leave you alone, but I'm not. I promised to keep an eye on you, and it's difficult to do when you're seeing me as the antagonist."

"But you hate everybody on the island practically. Your promises to everybody are inconsequential."

"No they're not. I promised to provide pig meat and I have."

"Not because you cared for people's hunger. I bet you did that so that everybody would worship you as the bloody pig killing king of the island. You did it for yourself." Jack stepped closer, never losing the smirk on his face. His red hair seemed to glow in the radiant sun.

"Do the reasons matter? I kept the promise regardless."

"But you have no problem doing whatever you want regardless of your other duties."

"If you're talking about the fire, what's more important? Keeping a fire that is serving no purpose to us on the beach or a pig that feeds everyone?"

"Getting rescued is my main desire. I'd rather have that over a full stomach. You're forgetting about going home. Back to beds and radios and supermarkets."

"There are other boys to watch the fire. But the issue is that you're treating me like I'm your enemy." Jack surveyed her intently. Cassie was disliking this conversation. It was heading on a path she didn't want to go down.

"You're constantly cracking jokes at my expense."

"Oh please. I do that to everyone."

"You don't like everyone!"

"But I'm civil to you. I look for you and talk to you. I keep an eye on you which is more than anyone else here has done, and it's the most I've done for one individual." Cassie shook her head and furrowed her eyebrows.

"I don't understand why you'd want to be nice to me."

"I said it before. You're my responsibility. _Mine. _Nobody else's." Cassie looked quizzically at him. At times, he almost seemed like a spazz. One minute he's a loner, the next he wants her company. Another minute he's callous, the next he's somewhat nice.

"But, I still don't underst-"

"Mine!" Both young adults were silent after Jacks outburst. Cassie was wide eyed and bewildered. Jack backed up a couple feet. His face was expressionless. The sun shone brightly behind her as the end of the day approached. His face was lit up, and she could see every freckle and the pale smoothness of his face. She felt an uneasiness in her abdomen that crawled into her throat almost like asphyxiation. For whatever, no matter the outlandishness of the feeling, the feeling couldn't be written down as bad. Unfamiliar, but the sensation she felt when she looked at him wasn't bad. She didn't know how to react, so she started to shift away.

"Okay, message received. I'm your responsibility, exclusively it seems. But I'll promise to stay out of trouble, so don't worry about it." Jack caught her arm as she attempted to walk passed him. She jolted with shock.

"Cassie wait. Can we just be non aggressive to each other? I think it would be for the better, really." Cassie raised her eyebrows and smiled slightly.

"I can't imagine you being jolly and friendly." Jack smirked.

"Ha ha. Believe or not when someone cracks a joke at someone else's expense there's a difference between whether or not they mean it or are just joking around." Cassie remained unconvinced and Jack could read it on her face.

"How about this; I make a deal with you. I'll teach you to swim and we don't act like we hate each other, deal?" Cassie wrenched her arm free of Jack's grip. Jack crossed his arms and waited. Cassie turned towards the group of boys over half a mile down the beach and glanced back at Jack who was standing seriously still. She laughed, and her voice cracked slightly.

"You're serious? You want to teach me to swim and be nice to me? What do you get out of it?"

"I'll get to see you in your knickers for one," he responded cheekily. Cassie fought down the curve of her lips and poked him lightly in the chest.

"Be serious. What else do you want? There's got to be something."

"You know, most other people wouldn't suspect there would be anything else, but you're different, you know that?" Jack flashed a bright grin. Cassie was unfazed.

"Come on Jack. Spill."

"When Ralph opens his trap to ejaculate any and all stupidity that is his orders for us, the nice thing you can do is side with me on an issue or two."

"Oh my...are you seriously cutting a deal with me in order to usurp _Ralph? _Are you crazy?" she whispered urgently. Jack frowned. All the humor in his voice evaporated.

"How about I help you learn to swim and we talk about the rest later?"

"Who said I wanted to learn how to swim?" Jack gave her a look that read "you're not fooling me."

"Do you want to drown again then if you don't want to learn how to swim?" Cassie begrudgingly shook her head no. Jack smiled, for he knew he had won the argument. Cassie looked the ginger lad over from head to toe. It almost felt wrong as if she were making a deal with the devil himself. But, Jack wasn't the devil in the sense that he was evil incarnate. He was just more...the bad guy of the situation. Sensibly Cassie should have just walked away and never glanced back. However, she was stranded on an island with relentless dangers and unabashed boys. Sensibly Cassie would need his protection and the swimming lessons would be beneficial too. Below the logic and the sensibility, she could tell she wasn't saying yes because it was reasonable. She was going to say yet because somewhere in her body she wanted to.

Her father would have told her not to roam with a boy with such deviousness, and her grandmother would have been appalled at her unladylike behavior. But neither of them were stranded on an island. Just her and they could not tell her what to do. There wouldn't be any stern reprimanding or scathing glares of dissatisfaction. She was free. The bittersweetness of being stranded on an island finally hit home.

Cassie extended her hand, and let it hover in between her and Jack. He grinned like the Cheshire cat, and confidently extended his hand as well. The two teenagers shook hands. Both were exercising newfound freedom. Cassie was elated at the escape from expectations, and Jack was happily enjoying the chance to become the chief without higher rule.

But, after that day, the order on the island began to break down.

AN: Oh golly. I think it's been, like, 2 years, since I've updated this. Probably none of my old readers are still around, but I've got to update this before the decade is over. Because, I think it's almost been half a decade since I started it. *shame* I have no excuse besides this story is low on my priority list (below friends, family, school, etc) but I do enjoy writing, so, I will keep writing. To finish this out, two things. 1. I didn't proofread this save once, so if you see a type or misspelling or a sentence looking like it misses a couple words, please let me know. 2. My field of interest is not writing or the arts in any manner. I've never written outside of my analysis papers in English class, so _do not _beret me on my story lacking in originality, or development, or being a suck story, because I am way past the point of writing this for personal improvement. I write the way I do because I like it, and I don't care about your opinion in the overall scheme of my story. It's fanfiction. It's written by amateurs. If something I say is scientifically incorrect, please illuminate me on the correction, but if my character is too static or flat or mary-sue, save it. I apologize for wasting space, but I honestly see this happen so much and it happens to me, and I'm not making a career of this. It's all in good fun, right?


End file.
